


Below Deck

by standarddeviationwut (ocoa)



Series: Catharsis [5]
Category: Hetalia: Axis Powers
Genre: Cardverse, M/M, Monarchies, Multi
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2016-10-28
Updated: 2016-10-28
Packaged: 2018-08-27 12:49:14
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,292
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/8402338
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/ocoa/pseuds/standarddeviationwut
Summary: There are rules. One must never cross them.





	

There were rules in the city of Hearts. Like how one must greet their elders with a kiss to the hand, or one must bestow upon the youth with gifts on a certain time of the year. These were all rules implemented and performed by the monarchy of Hearts, the strict and wise rulers of the land.

They were one of the few monarchies left, and it was clear why. Every other country's monarchy had fallen due to their own preoccupations, fallen due to their own vices, which was why the monarchs of Hearts had so many more rules heaped upon them.

The rules, for example, state that the King must never fall in love with the Queen, and vice versa.

They were a strictly professional relationship, working close but held back by this single wall.

(Some find it an irony, that the country of Hearts was one of the most strict on love.)

Chosen by the gods, every step is watched over by them. Should they break it, consequences were made, and divine punishment issued.

Or so the myths said.

Alfred never fully believed in them, even when he had been chosen as King, the mark of the rosary imprint upon the side of his neck. Alfred had long decided that whoever he fell in love with he would fall in love with. No one dictated who he could love.

And if it was Arthur then so be it.

But the Queen was cold, as they must always be, and there was no show about what the Queen thought about the rule.

Arthur kept himself distant, with controlled smile and prim figure, but Alfred fall hard and fast for his quiet compassion and his hidden concern. Alfred could see the looks that Arthur gave him, and he crumpled against that, wanting much more than Arthur dared to give.

So he relented.

And Alfred went out.

He often took walks into the markets, chatting with his people while disguised with cheaper clothes that frankly he found more comfortable. He grew up in that kind of community, and he missed the days when he could just leave any time he wanted, without the stuffiness of his uniform crushing into his neck. It was in marketplaces like this that he had met Ivan.

Ivan sculpted ice structures down to the greatest detail, all defined to the slightest chip and laced with salt to last longer. The first time Alfred saw magic was in the hands of Ivan, saw the world in his fingerprints, and Alfred was ashamed to say this, in light of his feelings for Arthur, that he loved Ivan too.

It wasn't long that Ivan realised he loved Alfred as well.

Today, he went to visit again, and Ivan looked up and lit up at the sight of him.

"Alfred?" He grinned, and they smiled at each other, shy before they fell into step with each other, hands clasping. Ivan waved to his little sister Natalia before they left, wanting to walk down the hallway.

Alfred tried not to react at the look Natalia sent him, and instead relaxed against Ivan.

The man was well built, his shoulders much wider than even Alfred, who was one of the strongest men in Hearts. He loomed over everyone, and at first it was terrifying, but one could realise that he was only a gentle giant.

They chatted with each other, enjoying the silences and the words and each other's company.

Alfred supposed it was time to reveal his identity. He wanted to bring Ivan home.

He wanted something more, and he felt they were ready.

A prickling doubt that Ivan was not almost stopped him, but Alfred was anything but cowardly. It's all about trying, and if Ivan didn't want to, then so be it.

So they sat at the bench, watching the snow fall onto the park grounds. White coated green and it was perhaps one of the most beautiful sights to see.

Except maybe for-

No.

He had given up that life, and now he loved Ivan.

He turned to look at his lover, and sighed.

"Hey Ivan?"

The man hummed.

"I need to tell you something."

He took in a breath.

"I'm actually the King of Hearts."

Ivan blinked.

"Really?" He said simply, voice thick with the Spadien accent Alfred thought he lost long ago.

"Yeah. I, um, I'm sorry for hiding it from you."

Ivan shook his head quickly, his hands catching Alfred's, encasing it with warmth and safety.

"No, I, I still love you, my sunflower."

Alfred blushed, cursing his inner 16 year old girl as his heart thumped in his ears.

"Then, would you come live with me? In the palace?"

Ivan blinked again. "What about your Queen?"

Alfred looked away. "He, ah, doesn't mind."

And Arthur really didn't. Alfred had raised this up the night before, and there was no reaction. If he was over him then why did it still hurt so much?

Ivan encased him in a hug, and Alfred clung back.

"Then ok. I'll live with you."

Happiness was not a word Alfred dared to use, not after so long, but he supposed if there was anything close it was this.

He smiled, and he buried himself in the love of Ivan.

* * *

Ivan believed that there was no such thing as a perfect man. But if there was someone he cared about the most it was probably Alfred. Raised in Spades, Ivan never fully grasped feelings as those in Hearts did, but there was something infinitely wrong here.

A few months after Alfred had asked him to move in, he brought Ivan to the castle.

"Only the best preparations," he had said, and Ivan couldn't say anything through the urge to kiss him (which he gladly did).

Still, the day he moved in, he knew something was wrong from the get go.

Alfred, for one, was tense.

He tried to hide it, yes, but Ivan could see through him and his tension showed through the edges of his smile, a carefully made shadow of his usual grin.

Secondly, was the Queen.

The Queen was at the entrance when he and Alfred had arrived, face pulled into a careful mask. The tension in Alfred's shoulders increased, and his smile dropped off completely at the sight of his partner.

"Your majesty," the Queen bowed to Alfred, before turning to him and sticking a hand out. "I am Arthur, I have heard a lot of you from His Majesty. It is a pleasure to meet you."

Ivan grasped his hand, ignoring the thundering in his ears.

"Indeed, same to you."

The Queen of Hearts nodded, and he turned to Alfred. There seemed to be a quiet conversation, before Alfred sighed and stood a bit straighter, more regal than the Alfred he knew. His hands pulled over Ivan's arm, and he leant in to press a kiss onto his cheek. "Excuse me, I have to prepare something for your room. Why don't you talk to Arthur for a bit?"

The Queen's eyes stayed carefully blank as he watched, only bowing as Alfred left. He turned back to Ivan, and there was something raw in his eyes, something Ivan had predicted from the moment he stepped into the castle.

"Take care of him," Arthur stated, "he doesn't have a lot of people to help him."

"He has you," Ivan stated.

Arthur gave a short, quiet laugh. "There are rules, one must never cross them."

There was an implied message in his eyes, and Ivan sighed. It's been a long while since he had seen those eyes.

"Indeed," he murmured. "It had caused the fall of great monarchies after all."

The Queen's eyes shadowed over.

"Yes...I suppose it has."

 

**Author's Note:**

> This has strayed quite a bit from the original plan, which was to have Arthur be jealous of Ivan for being able to love Alfred openly, but well, such is life. 
> 
> The traditions at the start is actuall Malay and Chinese tradition, which was fun to write even though it was only a few sentences. 
> 
> I may actually decide to continue this, but as you can see, everyone learns to form a nice little threesome so that's awesome. It just would have a lot of hiding and pain at the end. (And I might accidentally make Ivan the matchmaker of everything which is a little hilarious)


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